Bill-file.



Patented Aug. 29, I899.

No. 63l,772.

J. BEIN.

BILL FILE.

(Application filed July 8, 1897.)

2 SheetsSheet I.

( No Model.)

INVENTOR'.

EMU: J BEIN BY @W t? WITNESSES:

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Patented Aug. 29, I899,

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

B m I ATTORNEY E. J. BEIN.

BILL FILE.

:Application filed July 6, 1897.)

PEIERS ca. momurnoq REMINGTON u 1:

No. a3|,772.

(No Model.)

V UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EMIL J. BEIN, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO THE TUCKER FILECOMPANY, OF NEW JERSEY.

BILL-FILE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 631,772, dated August29 1899.

Application filed July 6, 1897. Serial No. 643,650. (No model.)

To all whont it may concern.-

Be it known that I, EMIL J. BEIN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Bill or Paper Files; andI do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being hadto the accompanying drawin gs, and to letters of reference markedthereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention has reference to a novel construction of paper or billfile in which the box or case to receive the files or papers is providedwith a movable'follower-board, behind which the papers to be filed awayare stored.

The object of this invention is to produce a novel construction ofclamping or holding mechanism which shall take up a minimum space on thefront of the follower or presser board, so that there may be no loss ofspace, to enable the filing away in the box or case of the largestpossible number of papers.

The invention therefore consists, essentially, in a novel constructionofclamping the same in an upright position against the papers, whetherthere is but one paper in the box or a large number of the same.

The invention consists,furthe'rmore,in combination with a follower orpresser-board having an opening for the insertion of the finger with aclamping-lever or suitable holding mechanism attached to the board,having the finger or pull portion of a pivoted lever in close proximityto the face of the board and directly in front of the hole therein,whereby the thickness of the operating mechanism occupies a minimumamount of space in front of the board, and hence provides a constructionof bill or paper file adapted to receive the largest possible number ofpapers.

The invention also consists in such other novel arrangements andcombinations of parts and the minor details of construction my presentinvention, and Fig. 2 is a side view of the several parts illustrated insaid Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a cross-section of the baseboard of the box orcase, taken on line a: and representing the follower or presser boardand its holding or clamping mechanism in front elevation, and Fig. iis avertical section taken on line'y in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a perspective viewof the several parts of my novel construction of looking or holdingmechanism before it-is attached to the follower or presser board, andFigs. 6 and 7 are similar views of certain parts of the mechanismillustrated in said Fig. 5.

Similar letters of reference are employed in all of the above-describedviews to indicate corresponding parts. a

In said drawings, A indicates the box in which the papers are to befiled away for future reference. Said box, which may be of any desiredform, is provided with the usual formof base-board a, connected at thebase of the front a, as shown at a and also at the sides by means of theguide bars or rods 1) and b, as clearly represented in Figs. 1 and 2;but the use of the guide bars or rods is not essential, and said parts aand a may be otherwise secured to form substantially a triangular box,as will be clearly evident. In the center of said base-board a are apair of parallel and longitudinal grooves a and a above which" I havesecured, by means of'screws, as c, or in any other wellknown manner, aguide-bar c in such a manner that itslongitudinal edges partiallyoverhang said grooves a and a, as will be seen from an inspection ofFig. 3. The follower orpresser board dis movably arranged above saidbase-board a by means of a plate 6, adapted to be secured upon the faceof said board din any wellknown manner, said plate e having a suitablycut-away portion 6' and a pair of lugs or projections, as 6 which areadapted to extend down into said slots at and 0. in the baseboard a andengage beneath the projecting longitudinal edges of the guide-bar c.Owing to this arrangement and construction of the parts said follower orpresser board can be freely moved backward and forward in an uprightposition and can be tilted to an inclined position in the usual mannerat any desired point of the board a. Said plate e, which is preferablymade from sheet metal, is provided along its longer sides with upwardlyor outwardly extending ribs or flanges and a, each of which has aperforated ear e and e is an elongated slot or opening, as clearlyillustrated in Fig. 6. Pivotally arranged on a suitable pin e which isfixed in said perforated ears 6, are a pair of arms g and 9', theirlower ends being in turn pivotally connected with a suitable pin fsecured in a pair of flanges or ribsf' of an operatingleverf. At or nearthe lower end f of saidlever and secured in said flanges or ribs f is apin f (See Figs. 4 and 5.) Pivotally arranged upon said pin f is aperforated lug or lugs h of a suitable clamping or holding dog or bar h,said dog or bar being provided with an outwardly-extending grasping orlocking jaw 7L Said dog or bar it is also s1id ably arranged above theelongated slot or opening e in the plate e by means of one or two screwsk which are screwed into said dog or bar it and extend through the slot6 having their heads arranged in a groove or recess 01, forming a guidein the follower or presser bar d, or they maybe secured in any othermanner and bear against washers h which in turn bear against thesurrounding edges of the slot or opening e in the plate 6, and therebyoperatively hold said dog or bar it in sliding contact on the face ofsaid plate 6, as clearly illustrated in Fig. 4. By this arrangement thedog or clamping-bar h slides vertically against the face of said platee, thereby overcoming any possible forward tilting motion of thefollower-board (1 when the parts of the operating mechanism are in theirclamping positions. The said bar h be ing thus pulled or pushed down inits vertical guide forms a very positive lock with but very littlefriction and consequent wear of the movable parts, as in theconstructions of clamping devices as heretofore made, the clampingbarsof which have an outward movement, which thus bring an outward strainupon the follower-board and prevent its being positively locked in itsposition for retaining the papers or files back of it. Saidoperating-lever f is formed with an inwardly and slightly-outwardlyprojecting end portion f at the top, which forms a finger-piece on saidlever in very close proximity to the face of the follower or presserboard d diboard for the. insertion of the finger into the same anddirectly back of said finger-piece of the lever'f, whereby said levercan be drawn forward and the holding-jaw h of the dog or bar itdisengaged from its operative holding engagement with the guide-bar c topermit the forward and backward movement of the board d upon the base aof the box or case A, as will be clearly evident.

When it is desired to introduce the papers between the follower orpresser board (2 and the front board a of the case or box A, theoperator places his or her finger in the space formed by the opening 01in said board d di- IBCtly behind the finger-piece or pull portion f ofthelever f, whereby the parts of the looking or clamping mechanism bypushing said lever forward are moved from the positions indicated inFigs. 1 to 4, inclusive, to the position indicated in Fig. 5, and thefollower-board is free to tip forward and can be moved along theguide-bar c to enable the person to get at the papers. To hold thepapers in their stored or filed-away positions behind said board 01, thesaid board is moved backward in its upright position on the base a ofthe box A and the lever f pushed back against the board. As soon as thelever is turned into the position indicated in Fig. 4: the grasping orholding end of the dog or bar It binds tightly upon the guide-bar c, andthe arms g and g, which are pivotally connected with the plate 6, willforcibly push the follower or presser board d against the papers behindit.

From the above description it will be seen that I have produced a cheapand simplyconstructed device which is perfectly operative for thepurposes stated and in which the several parts of the looking or holdingmechanism take up very little room in front of the board, and hence thebox can be used to store away a great many more papers than in theconstructions of file-holders as now made. Furthermore, by thearrangement of the compound-lever construction a back pressure isexerted upon the follower or presser board at or near the middlethereof, while at the same time there is a direct downward pressure ofthe dog and an upward motion of the board, wherebyI derive the benefitof an absolute lock and receive the full benefit of the depth of thefile.

I am fully aware that changes may be made in the several arrangementsand combinations of the parts, as ,well as in the details of theconstruction thereof, without departing from the scope of my presentinvention. Hence I do not limit my invention to the ex-. actarrangements and combinations of the several parts and the constructionthereof as described in the accompanying specification and embodied inthe clauses of the claim.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is rectly in front of ahole or opening d in said F 1. In a bill or paper file, the combination,

with the box or case, of a movable follower or presser board, and alooking or clamping mechanism operatively secured to said board,consisting essentially, of a slotted plate 6, a holding dog or baroperatively held over the slot in said plate e and having avertically-sliding motion on said plate, and means connected therewithfor causing the holding or grasping engagement of said dog or bar withthe baseboard of the box or case, substantially as and for the purposesset forth.

2. In a bill or paper file, the combination, with the box or case, of amovable follower or. presser board, and a looking or clamping mechanismoperatively secured to said board, consisting, essentially, of a slottedplate e, a holding dog or bar operatively held over the slot in saidplate e and having a verticallysliding motion on said plate, a lever fpivotally connected with said dog or bar, and a separate means ofpivotal connection of said lever with said plate 6, substantially as andfor the purposes set forth,

3. In a bill or paper file, the combination, with the box or case, andits movable follower or presser board, of a locking mechanismoperat-ively'secured to said board, consisting, essentially of a plate 2having a pair of longitudinal flanges or ribs provided with perforatedears or lugs, a pin in said ears or lugs, a lever f, one or more armspivotally connected with said pin on the plate 0 and with said lever f,and a holding dog or bar h having a vertically-sliding motion on saidplate 6, but also pivotally connected with the bottom of said lever f,and having a for- Wardly-extending holding-jaw, substantially as and forthe purposes set forth.

In testimony that I claim the invention set forth above I have'hereuntoset my hand this 2d day of July, 1897.

EMIL J. BEIN.

Witnesses: I

FREDK. C. FRAENTZEL, WM. 11. OAMFIELD, Jr.

